FoodSafety

“It takes a lifetime to build a reputation, but only a moment to lose it”

Douglas Willis LtdFarming and butchery go hand in hand for us. Our priority is our livestock, we hand select our animals to ensure our high standards are met and our strict guidelines are adhered to. Our experience and knowledge of farming and butchery extends back three generations as does our reputation.

Case study

About the companyMr Douglas Willis founded the business in 1940 when he opened a butcher’s shop in Old Cwmbran. He recollects on the first day he opened, when his father stressed to him the importance of quality where fresh meat is concerned “Never compromise quality or service and you will always have customers”.

Douglas Willis are devoted to producing excellent meat for our customers. The company currently employs 50 people in the meat processing plant and 27 people in three retail units.

He has carried this ethos through for nearly 70 years, instilling it in his son David, and grandsons Sean and Peter. Due to his beliefs of how meat should be produced, Douglas Willis decided to raise livestock

BRCGS Case Study

Our vision has always been to build a reputation as the most respected meat producer in South Wales, and we would like to share this with as many people as possible throughout the UK.

and bought his own farm so that he could raise livestock and produce meat from pasture to plate.

Why BRCGS?A large ready meal company that we supply informed us that in order to stay listed as a supplier we would need to become BRCGS certificated. So, we sought accreditation as quickly as possible. Leaping straight into the full version of the BRCGS Food Standard was a big ask in our short time frame, so we decided BRCGS START! was a good fit for us.

Process of implementing the Standard Douglass Willis were already certificated to the SALSA Standard so had a Food Safety Manual and a Food Safety Culture programs in place, upgrading to the BRCGS START! Intermediate requirements was therefore a relatively smooth process.

BRCGS Case Study

BRCGS START! Certificated

Established1940

During our long-term relationship with ZERO2FIVE Food Industry Centre we have received targeted support to assist us in achieving SALSA and to progress onto BRCGS START! They have supported us in many areas including HACCP development, procedure writing, product development and labelling; enabling us to target new markets and expand our customer base. “The advice provided by ZERO2FIVE Food Industry Centre has proven accurate and invaluable and has given Douglas Willis the confidence to explore markets that were previously too high a glass ceiling for us to reach”, said Helen Roberts, Technical Manager.

What changes and challenges did you face to meet the requirements of the BRCGS START! Standard?Threat Assessment and Critical Control Points TACCP – this was a new concept to our company and something which was not previously included in the SALSA or BRCGS Global Markets Standard.

The BRCGS audit reviewed our management and production processes, ensuring that we now have a more robust packaging traceability system.

The 5 letters `BRCGS` are widely recognised within the food industry. Being able to say that we are certificated to a BRCGS Standard opens trading doors that were previously closed to us.

What commercial benefits have you seen?Gaining BRCGS START! accreditation meant that we were able to continue trading with the ready meal company we supply and launch into one of the big 4 supermarkets. We are currently in talks to supply an additional supermarket.

Any top tips for sites who are thinking about implementing a BRCGS StandardsLook to see what certification body your suppliers are using. Ask them what their experience was like and the name of the auditor they had. Remember you can request an auditor with experience in your industry.

How does your company communicate the benefits of certification?We prominently display our BRCGS certificate in our reception and email a copy to all our customers for their files.

Douglas Willis Ltd,5 Grange Ind. Est, Llanfrecha Way,Cwmbran, Torfaen, NP44 8HQT: 01633 877777W: www.douglaswillis.co.uk